Tank.



' PATENTED APR. 17, 1906.

O. HJELKREM/ TANK APPLICATION FILED FEB. 17, 1905. RENEWED JAN. 19.1906

' of some sort are an essential feature of the OLOF HJELKREM, OF

PATIENT OFFICE.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

I TANK.

Application filed February 17, 1905. Renew To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OLOF HJELKREM, a citizen of the United States,residing at Ohicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Tanks, of which thefollowing is a specification.

Many tanks used in breweries and other places are of heavy construction,so that it is impracticable to handle them, and .in some instances theyare secured in place so that they are to all intents and purposes permanent. Usuall r the sides of the tanks used in breweries are built up ofwooden staves, and the heads also are made of several pieces of woodheld in place by the staves. Unless means be provided to prevent it thewood shrinks and the joints open and permit leakage above the level ofthe liquid in the tank, especially when, as in many instances, the tankis subjected to heavy internal pressure. To prevent this, it hasheretofore been the practice to iiood the head of the tank with water toa depth of several inches, but this water becomes foul and must beremoved frequently if the tank and premises are to be kept in sanitarycondition.

To provide simple, eflicient, and inexpensive means whereby this may bedone is the object of the present invention. To this end I provide thetank with a drainage-tube which extends through the head and downwardinto the tank and thence out through a wall of the tank to the outsidethereof and is open at both its upper and lower ends, but is without anyinternal communication with the tank, and I providemanually-controllable means for closing the tube when the water is to beretained and for opening it when the water is to be drawn off.Preferably this closure is located at the upper end of the tube and isaccessible from above the tank; but I desire to have it understood thatthe invention is not limited to details in the con struction of thedevice. On the contrary, I believe myself to be the first to provide atank with a drainage-tube arranged as described, regardless of thecharacter of the means used for temporarily closing the tube when the.water is to be retained on the head of the tank and for opening it whenthe water is to be drawn off, albeit retaining means invention. In thisrespect a tank embodying the invention differs from one in which aconstantly open drainage-tube leads from Specification of LettersPatent.

Patented April 17, 1906.

ed January 19,1906. Serial No. 296,831.

the head of the tank downward and through the bottom for the purpose ofpreventing the accumulation of any water on the head.

In the accompanying drawings, which are made a part of thisspecification, Figure 1 is a vertical section of a tank having adrainagetube embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged section ofthe improved tube, an intermediate portion being broken away to indicateinde'liniteness of length. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view of amodification.

A represents the tank, which may be of any desired capacity and of anydesired construction and may be provided. with those accessories thatfit it for the purpose for whichit is intended. My present invention isnot concerned with these features, but may be applied to any tankofwhatever construction so long as it is made of wood, and hence hasjoints that are liable to open and cause leakage. Usually the tank is sosupported that its bottom and head slope to one side, and my improveddrainage-tube, which is shown at B, is preferably passed through boththe bottom and head at the low side of the head and at a distance ofabout two inches from the chime.

The tube as a whole may be made of as many parts or sections asconvenience or circumstances may render desirable. In the drawings Ihave shown it as being made of two parts. The lower part C is a piece ofgalvanized-iron pipe threaded at its lower end for a sufficient distancefrom its end, and the threaded portion passes through an opening in thebottom A of the tank and is there secured by means of a pair ofclamping-nuts D, washers E, and gaskets F, being arranged between thenuts and upper and lower faces of the bottom for the purpose of makingthe joint absolutely liquid-tight. This pipe C extends upward nearly tothe head A of the tank and at its upper end has threaded engagement withthe upper one of the two parts, which latter consists of a hollowfitting G, of brass or other suitable material. It is threaded on itsexterior and screwed through an opening in the head. It is providedwithin the tank with an enlarged polygonal head G, which is adapted toreceive a wrench and which provides a shoulder that engages the underside of the head of the tank and limits its insertion in the opening.Its upper end is reduced, as at H, to provide a shoulder I, which is alittle below the top face of the head of the tank, while the reducedportion pro- ITO jeots above the head. The reduced portion also isthreaded for receiving a correspondingly-threaded cap J, which screwsdown over the reduced portion H and is adapted to bear upon the shoulderI through the medium of a gasket or packing-ring K, of leather or othersuitable material, interposed for the purpose of making the jointliquid-tight. The reduced portion of the fitting is provided with asuitable number of lateral openings L, which are located at about thelevel of the top surface of the head of the tank, so that when uncoveredthe water may flow through them and into the tube and thence downwardthrough the tube, escaping from the lower end thereof below the bottomof the cask. The openings are uncovered by unscrewing the cap and arecovered by screwing it down.

In the modification shown in Fig. 3 the drainage-tube (lettered B forthe sake of distinction) is led out through the side instead of throughthe bottom of the tank. It is made up of sections of straight pipe ofsuitable length and suitable elbows, a suitable packing device I) beingarranged in the opening through which the horizontal straight sectionpasses.

What I claim as new, and desire'to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A tank having a drainage-tube extending completely through it fromtop to bottom, said tube being open at its upper end to admit water fromabove the head of the tank and at its lower end to permit the water toescape below the bottom of the tank, and being without internalcommunication with the tank, and means for closing and opening the tubeat will, substantially as described.

2. A tank having a drainage-tube extending through its head and downwardtherefrom, terminating at its lower end on the outside of the tank, saidtube being open at both ends and being without internal communicationwith the tank and having a portion projecting above the head andprovided With an opening for admitting water, and means for closing andopening said opening at will, substantially as described.

3. A tank having an opening through its head, a fitting secured in saidopening and projecting above the upper surface of the head, theprojecting portion being threaded and provided with lateral openings, athreaded cap fitting on said projecting portion and a tube extendingfrom said fitting downward and through a second opening with which thetank is provided, said tank and tube being without internalcommunication, substantially as described. 4. A tank having an openingthrough its head, a fitting secured in the opening in the head andhaving a reduced portion projecting above the head and providing ashoulder, said reduced portion being threaded and provided with alateral opening, a threaded cap fitting said reduced portion and adaptedto be screwed thereon and into contact with the shoulder, and a tubeextending downward from said fitting and passing out through a secondopening with which the tank is provided, the tank and tube being withoutinternal communication, substantially as described.

5. A tank having a drainage-tube extend.- ing through the head anddownward into the tank and thence out through the tank to the outsidethereof, said tube being open at its upper end above the head for theadmission of water and open at its lower end, outside of the tank forthe discharge of water, and a controllable closure for said tube, thetank and tube being without internal communication, substantially asdescribed.

OLOF HJELKREM.

Witnesses:

L. M. HOPKINS, JESSIE E. LITsEY.

